This review is for the Arctic Zone Titan zipperless hardbody cooler. Over the years, we’ve invested in three or four small coolers like this one; they all started off looking great and working great. However, they all seemed to have one fatal flaw; the zipper. Our last small cooler lasted for probably six months of non-heavy use before the zipper broke. A broken zipper means a non-closing cooler which, in the middle of summer, isn’t helping the cooler in completing its main task of keeping food and drinks cold and in an unspoiled condition. Because of the zipper, our small, red cooler is no longer our go-to cooler. Luckily, the holidays were on the not-too-distant horizon and I was in the market for a family present. I decided to search for coolers that featured no zipper (except for side, front or top pockets). I found this Arctic Zone cooler whose Amazon description prominently featured “flip open zipperless lid.” Just what I was looking for! After searching a bit more and discovering that I can’t afford to spend $299 on a similarly sized Yeti cooler, I bought the Arctic Zone from Amazon Prime and it arrived within two days in a plain looking brown box. I took the 16-can, moss green cooler out and was pleasantly surprised by how nice it looks. I immediately (since this was the main reason I bought it) opened and closed the top, made easy by no zipper. The cooler seems to seal well and the main latch is held down with Velcro. There is a nice, insulated main front pocket and a smaller pocket in front of that one; these pockets zipper closed with sturdy looking zippers. If those pocket zippers break, since they don’t close the main compartment, it won’t really matter much. Often, we use the outside pockets to store utensils and napkins; they don’t require the pocket being zipped closed. I should mention that this cooler has two webbed pockets on either side; a nice touch. One of this cooler’s best features is the plastic liner that’s inside; it fits tightly inside the cooler’s outer shell. This bin can handle your food, drinks, ice and water without leaking. Unless, of course, you crack it. But, I’ll mention that below. Here I’ve called out some of the reasons why you would buy this cooler and some of the reasons you may not: Pros Price. A very good price for what you get. You could spend hundreds more to get a Yeti to keep your food cold, or hundreds less and buy this Arctic Zone to keep your food cold. Bin. The bin could crack, but even if you break it, you can take it out and still have a functioning cooler. In fact, there may be times when you would use this cooler without the plastic insert. For example, if you are really tight on space and may need to smash this cooler into a tiny space. Shelf. This cooler comes with a small removable shelf that sits at the top of the plastic bin. You can place an ice pack here, or something more delicate that you want to separate from everything else in the cooler (such as a sandwich). Design. Has a nice handle, outside pockets, nice color (white or moss green), cleans up well, and is sturdy, although time will tell. Cons: Smash bin potential. If you’re not careful and you smash the cooler too much, you could crack the plastic bin. I haven’t seen where you could order a replacement; you might be able to find a small garbage can that would fit. The cooler wouldn’t be worthless without the plastic insert however; you could still use the cooler’s outer shell, you’d just need to be careful about leakage. Pop the top open. With this cooler, you won’t be able to cram past full and then hope to force the top closed. That Velcro latch won’t hold and your cooler will open. Long term staying power of the Velcro latch. Velcro tends to start off holding great and then lose its holding power over time. Although it’s not all gloom and doom with the Velcro because you could use a bungee cord to hold the lid down if the Velcro totally gives out. Those are my observations about this cooler. Like all products, time will tell how good the Velcro is, how sturdy the fabric and seams are and whether the handle breaks off. But, my impression of the Arctic Zone Titan is that it is well designed and should give you years of trouble free cooling; overall a great value.
